Passing Glances, Lasting Memories
by xlamentx
Summary: Nobodies don’t last forever. We may not have hearts, but I’ll keep my memories close to where one would be. Remember, you promised… “Let’s meet again in the next life.”


Passing Glances, Lasting Memories  
Kingdom Hearts 2  
- Lament

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**Summary**: Nobodies don't last forever. We may not have hearts, but I'll keep my memories close to where one would be. Remember, you promised… "Let's meet again in the next life."

**Disclaimer**: KH2 copyright of Square/Disney/BVG.

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Black leather gloved hands held onto a memory, precious to the Nobody who held it; a singular piece of paper, given to him from another Nobody. Upon it was a drawing, simple, almost childish, in its artistic ability, but nonetheless special. The drawing itself featured a spiky-haired blonde boy dressed in a long black cloak, holding hands with a taller boy with spiky red hair, also dressed in a long black cloak. Both of them had their backs to the viewer, as if they were looking at something off towards the horizon. The possessor of the drawing blinked at the image one last time before folding the paper in quarters and stashing it in his cloak.

A weight was felt on the man's shoulder; his emerald green eyes focused on the shiny, almost naïve ocean blue eyes of the Nobody behind him. Words barely registered as 'are you okay?' fluttered from the lips of the blue-eyed blonde. His brow was furrowed almost in worry; his friend was in a slump, downtrodden and almost…_ lonely_. Green eyes became downcast as the redhead who owned them turned his head away. A just audible monotone 'yeah' reply escaped his throat.

The redhead blinked, the word 'emotion' coming up a blank in his mind. His thoughts jumbled up, trying to pinpoint the source of his sullen-ness, yet all lead to an obvious fact: Nobodies could not feel.

Then why did he feel so _betrayed_?

He sighed and brushed his friend off. Standing, he gave the blonde a small nod, as if symbolizing there was nothing wrong with him, nothing to be worried over. He strode off through the doorway, pausing as he exited the room he happened to find himself in. It all felt so ordinary, so usual. The green emeralds gazed up and down the hallway, as if seeking something out-of-the-ordinary. Sighing at the sight of nothing new yet again, the man made his way left through the halls.

White, white, grey, black. A castle as magnificent as that of Castle Oblivion would normally flourish with extravagancy; stained-glass window panels, nearly a mile high all about the castle, colors in bright hues, carpets snaking around to every doorway. But not in Castle Oblivion. Monochrome around every corner, in every room, with cold, hard flooring, lined with almost distraught, redundant images of the seal of Organization XIII. Repetitive nonsense throughout the complex, special effects by way of "magic"… Gates, doorways, floor panels, laced with glass and reinforced plastic, shaped and decorated with basic shapes - squares, circles, diamonds, triangles. It seemed so… mundane. So lackluster. And then, without him, it was so… empty.

Driven by the need to know what was buzzing through his head, in his chest, the tall redhead strode through the sullen, echoing halls. Noises could be heard through some of the doors - laughter in Number Three's room, video game noises behind Number Five's door… Blatantly inattentive to where he was going, the emerald-eyed Nobody somehow found himself all the way on the opposite end of the hall where he had begun. He looked about, mouth agape at what he found himself in front of.

_'This is his room… This is where he stayed when he was still with the Organization… This is… Before…'_

The Nobody's mind went wild; thoughts and memories jumbled together, reeling about in his head. Voices bounced about in his head - it was all becoming an increasingly painful headache. Eyelids flew over the emerald spheres, gloved hands gripped his head, as if it would dull the pain, even though futile in the attempt. His teeth were clenched as the pain ripped through him; it seemed forever until the pain eased away and he momentarily collapsed upon the wall nearest him on the right.

The redhead regained himself after moment and breathed in. He didn't want to turn back around and go to his room… His legs were tired, his head ached. He longed to sit down, to lay down and rest, even for just a moment. Seeing no other way, due to the room being secluded at the end of the hall because of the owner's slight edgy attitude towards the other members, the Nobody, reluctantly, entered.

Nothing was different from before. Everything was as it was left. There were even spare socks flung about. After quietly closing the door behind him, he laid himself upon the bed. The emerald jewels scanned the room. Aside from the socks, everything was so tidy, so perfect. Even that mysterious piece of paper resting under the picture frame.

_'… I don't remember that.'_

Curious, the Nobody raised himself up and strode over. He pulled the paper carefully out from under the photograph. Scanning the message, tears began to well up in his emotionless green eyes. Setting the paper down, he gazed, almost lovingly, at the photograph it had been under.

It was almost as if he had suddenly remembered what it was like to have a heart. Almost like he found his own again. And it was the work just a simple message, a few simple words on a forgotten paper from long ago. But… It was like he was right there.

_I know you must be mad at me for running off. Well that is, if you had emotions. But… no matter what I must've said to you… I want you to know… I… I love you. To the extent that a Nobody can love. I can't deny it any further… I'll find my heart and come back for you… Axel. Don't ever forget me. - Roxas_

Axel slept in Roxas's room from then on, storing his memories in the confines of the room.

And, in his newly found heart.

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**Author's Notes**: Yes, I know, it's sappy. But it was supposed to be slightly angsty, and then the ending was supposed to be really sweet. And, yay, AxelxRoxas! x3 I tried to stay as close as I could to the actual-ness of the game, except I kind of warped the castle to have individual rooms for the characters. Otherwise... I hope I did good enough. xD

Anyway. I'd love your reviews! This is only a oneshot, so I hope you don't want more! xDD;; But uh, if you like my writing, I'm in the middle of chapter 3 of my other story. ; Oh and I wrote this so you guys won't be too mad at me for being really slow with These Chains. Enjoy!


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